RECORD NUMBER OF DOLPHINS GATHER IN THE NORTH-EAST

Sea life: Some spotters say more than 30 of the creatures swam offshore

Dolphins gathered in the North Sea in record numbers on Sunday, delighting the large crowds gathered on the shore.

Bottlenose dolphins are a common site off the city’s Torry Battery but never before had such a large group been seen.

A social media post

“It really is the most incredible experience”

by the team at Dolphin Watch, organised by RSPB Scotland, brought sea life watchers to the harbour in huge numbers.

Once there, they captured stunning images as a pod of dolphins numbering at least 30, played in the water.

Since the Dolphin Watch initiative launched for the year on May 10 not a day has gone by when the marine mammals have not been spotted by volunteers.

However, even they were stunned by the numbers sighted on Sunday, prompting them to take to Facebook to highlight a special opportunity.

Sarah Harwood from Aberdeen was among those lucky enough to catch photos of the playful dolphins, who were seen jumping out of the water and swimming at impressive speeds. She said: “I was up at the Dolphin Watch at Torry Battery and I speaking to one of the team members. She had said they had counted at least 30 dolphins but thought there were likely to have been even more.

“It really is the most incredible experience to actually see the dolphins jumping out of the water. I have recently taken up photography, mainly because I had hopes of catching some great images of the dolphins off Aberdeen.

“After Sunday, I already have a good collection of photographs.”

Since it started in May, Dolphin Watch has reported seeing an average of 15 dolphins swimming past the harbour mouth each day.

Laura Watson, Dolphin Watch visitor engagement officer, said Sunday’s pod was “a huge group”.

She said: “The Facebook post encouraging people to come along went out just before the World Cup final started, but we still had plenty people come to the Battery, including some straight from an event we were hosting in Duthie Park.

“I’ve worked in a few dolphin-viewing sites across the UK and never seen anything like what we have in Aberdeen.

“I have my fingers crossed it remains like this. I think we will definitely continue to see a good amount of dolphins throughout the summer.”

JUMPING FOR JOY: Sarah Harwood’s son plays by sea as one of the dolphins leaps off Torry at the weekend